The Pillar
by ohamandalynn
Summary: "I don't think Zelda was ever supposed to reset everything. I knew the timeline was unstable. I knew Zelda had done something wrong. You were the only thing holding the alternate reality together. Because you're the Hero of Time. You're the pillar." Slash.
1. Chapter 1

The Pillar_  
_  
ohamandalynn

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A/n: I feel like this pairing is so under-appreciated. I also feel like time-travel was severely abused in Ocarina of Time. I don't think you can just reset everything. So…this happened. Sheik is his own person. In this story, I sort of accidentally made Zelda out to look like a bit of a bitch. I really didn't try to make it that way; that's just the way it happened. I have nothing against Zelda. Also, this is a bit AU considering Link doesn't go to Termina after the world is reset.

Rating: T for violence, and kissing.

Disclaimer: Dat shit ain't mine, dawgggg.

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|Chapter One|

_It's the one thing that I swore I'd never do. _

It could be considered artistry, but most of the time that eluded him when he sat in that stupid courtyard, watching her speak to nobles and entertain the delicate ladies that perched on chairs like birds. Words were art and he knew that, but unfortunately words also eluded him. He had no voice and it had always been that way. She seemed okay with that; there was never any danger that would require him to speak anyway.

It was a strange thing, though. The day he turned seventeen – a day that would have been far more important in another timeline, he now knew – it was like the goddesses had opened his head and filled it to the brim with the knowledge of a past life. The dreams now made sense and he had interrupted her fancy lunch to pull her aside. Even if he could talk, he wouldn't have spoken. He had handed her a letter, his eyes boring into her, hearing her voice in his head saying, "I will return you to your original time, Link. You won't remember any of these atrocities."

She told him she remembered too. She didn't know why they could remember, but it was nothing to worry about, she was sure. So, with a mind full of dungeons and monsters and murder, he carried on his duties as Zelda's silent bodyguard, watching her and her father carry the Kingdom into a golden age. She could handle the memories, but he could not.

They haunted him. Every time he shut his eyes, he saw witches and dragons, felt the burn of flames and the ache of poison in his flesh. He heard the voice of Navi screaming to him when he was near death. He felt fangs ripping muscle from bone and watched everyone he cared about be taken away. He felt the cause he fought for slipping from his grasp as he sloshed through ankle deep waters, fighting himself. He saw the old eyes of the Deku tree, withering as he died and he heard the haunting melodies that allowed him passage from temple to temple. More than any of that, however, was a figure dressed in blue and white, wild blonde hair escaping white bandages, and piercing red eyes that could almost see through his soul.

He knew who this person was, of course: it was her, disguised as a sheikah. Before he knew that, the sheikah was an enigma, barely any older than Link, powerful and quick. He was a force of nature at times, too wise for his age and too quick to be caught. After losing his only friend to Sagehood, bloodied and broken, he had been Link's anchor, holding him to the earth and to his purpose as the Hero of Time. He was a silent traveler through Hyrule field, offering a kind of companionship that Link was unfamiliar with, but grateful for. He became Link's everything, the only coveted thing in a world that was ruined, in a body that was not truly his, with a mission that was almost completely impossible. He was Sheik and he was everything.

But then he was Zelda and something broke inside his head.

It was a sort of deception that twisted his mind the day he turned seventeen and remembered what had truly happened. With the knowledge of deceit came anger, anger that he had nearly died to save this Kingdom and no one knew. He didn't want fame, but Hyrule stood in a kind of peace that its inhabitants took for granted. Instead he was dragged into a holy war, made the Hero of Time, handed a sacred, evil-killing artifact, only to be thrown back into a half-life, knowing that something was wrong. The dreams, the feelings of déjà vu, the emotions that would creep up on him; he wasn't losing his mind, he was _gaining_ it.

Thoughts crumbled just as they began. He didn't know what to do and every idea of how to move forward was lost the moment it was found. His mind raced and within months after his birthday, he could no longer perform his duties with any sort of concentration. She noticed and pulled him aside, worried about his wellbeing. It reminded him that she hadn't _tried_ to deceive him, but it wasn't enough to put his mind at rest. He wouldn't speak, of course, but he wouldn't write, either. Her unease grew as he found that sleep escaped him and food disgusted him. A guard replaced his position temporarily, and he wandered aimlessly, feeling like a ship without an anchor.

Then he woke up one morning and he knew it was time to go.

Torchlight dazzled him after days of darkness. He packed in the night and left before the sun rose, leaving a note for her. All it said was, "I need to find peace. I hope you understand." The first place he went was the ranch in Hyrule field. That place had held importance to him in the other timeline and it had been the only place that he had felt safe then. Malon was delighted to meet him and after weeks of helping on the farm, he felt somewhat peaceful now having regained a friend. Epona, their prized but wild mare was stuck to him like glue and when he hummed the melody from his past life, she would become a gentle, docile creature.

It surprised Malon that he knew of the melody that her mother had sang, but soon, she convinced her father that Link should have the horse. Epona, while beloved, was useless to them and Malon seemed to just know that he would be moving on soon. The night before he left, she kissed him, telling him that she'd been having dreams about him since she was young and that she always knew she was meant to give Epona to him. For the first time, he had wanted to talk and tell her the truth about everything, but he didn't. He had let her hug him and he left before she woke up the next morning.

He chose to go to Kakariko next, knowing that the place was full of sheikah history. With Epona, it only took him a day and a half without stopping and once he was there, he found that it was a lot wealthier than it had been in his past life. He had never been to the village before; something about the place had always repelled him. Now he knew it was because of both the well and the Shadow Temple. Both places had been horrifying experiences and his subconscious had seemed to know that.

The place was nearly as thriving as Castle Town Market and it was full of colors, far more than in any other place he'd been. He remembered it being drab and all browns and reds, full of refugees escaping from Gannondorf's reign. Even before the Imprisoning War started, he remembered it being a modest sort of village, full of construction and loose cuckoos. Now, as he walked through, people bumped against him and there was a constant hum of voices. It was nearing noon when he arrived and the smell of food nearly smothered him. Windows sparkled like gems and people carried themselves like they were part of the royal family. While it was a happy sight, it wasn't his sort of crowd. It didn't take long for him to find his way to the graveyard, a place that wasn't nearly as creepy anymore.

A few families were there, visiting graves, something he had never seen before. Dampe's hut was more like a cottage and he was cutting the grass, still hunched over but smiling. The weeping eye of the sheikah covered everything and memories of Sheik engulfed him like flames. He felt weak and had to sit down next to one of the graves, the pain of learning Sheik was Zelda still resonating through him so profoundly. Through his travels so far, he had expected the sheikah to leap out of the sky and tell him where to go next. This time around, he could've used some direction.

It only took two days in Kakariko to drive him away. The village – it was really more of a town – was far too noisy and while he thought of climbing up Death Mountain and seeing the Gorons, he decided against it. There was a feud going on between the villagers and the Gorons and no one was allowing access to the trail at the moment. He doubted any of the Gorons had dreams about him like Malon did, so he left Kakariko, deciding to go back to the forest.

When he had been sent back to his own time by Zelda, he had woken up in his bed on what he now realized would've been the morning that Navi woke him up. He had felt incredibly sore and bruised from the beating Mido had given him the day before. There was no little fairy to wake him up, telling him that the Deku Tree was expecting him. When he had left his hut, Saria hadn't come to greet him, congratulating him on his new fairy companion. She hadn't existed, in fact. Learning that he was supposed to have a best friend that would help him all through childhood was a more damaging thought than he would've expected.

He didn't know why Zelda had bothered to send him back. He wouldn't have minded missing the years of physical and emotional abuse he received from nearly every Kokiri. He was an outcast. He had no fairy and he looked nothing like the Kokiri. More than that, he woke up without a voice. No matter what he tried, he couldn't speak. So they hurt him in every way they could. He was miserable, plagued by nightmares and the nagging sensation that something was completely, utterly _wrong_.

Once he had turned thirteen and grew too big for his house, they had sent him away, out of the forest and off to join the rest of the hylian race. Instinctively, he had wandered through Hyrule field until he came to the castle. Something drew him there and he enrolled in the castle guard, even though he didn't speak. While he went through his years of training in combat, Zelda had taken a liking to him and made him her personal guard.

Going back to the forest now had nothing to do with retribution. He was sure he would see Mido and the other bullies that had made his life hell on earth; they didn't concern him. He was bigger, stronger, dressed in bright royal guardian armor, and equipped with at least twenty different weapons. Going to the forest was only so he could find the temple and see if he could communicate with Saria. He would try and talk for her.

The moment he entered the forest again, dread seeped through him at the sight of the familiar trees and sign posts. Glowing motes floated lazily through the air, some sticking together and twirling in a long chain. Everything was hazy in a way that reminded him of cold and lonely nights, sitting in his doorway and attempting to stop the blood pouring from his nose.

Some of the children recognized him as he entered the village proper, but they just backed away and whispered to each other, green eyes wide and scared. He caught sight of Mido, sitting next to a fire and sharpening a stick. Their eyes met and for a moment, he looked scared as well, but he covered it with a glare and looked away pointedly. As soon as he climbed up to the entrance to the Lost Woods, he immediately felt more at ease. His memories from his other life told him that him and Saria used to go into the woods to escape the bullies and play games. She kept him happy and taught him songs that only Kokiri were supposed to learn so they could communicate with the forest spirits. Being there was already like being close to her again. The path to the Sacred Meadow was one he found easily and without monsters.

Entering the temple took some work and creative climbing techniques, but as soon as he was inside, he heard a voice. "Link?"

His eyes adjusted to the dimness and in the middle of the main room, he saw sitting on top of a wooden platform, Saria. Her green eyes were wide with shock and Link suddenly realized how incredibly small she really was. He took a step forwards but stopped, shock filling his body and unsure if he should get close to her for fear that she was an illusion that would shatter.

"Is it really you? Do you remember me?" she asked.

He nodded slowly, unable to tear his eyes away from her. After a long moment, she leaped to the ground and ran to him. He crouched down and caught her, holding on to her as if she were his lifeline. Although she was small, she was strong and she smelled exactly as he remembered.

"I thought I would never see you again, Link," Saria cried, burying her face in his shoulder. "You were supposed to forget everything. I thought you would forget me."

He shook his head, unable to speak even though he wanted to. Now that he remembered her, how could he have forgotten her? She had been a part of his dreams, one of the voices in his head. She was his best friend. The fact that he had _ever_ forgotten her was an atrocity.

When she pulled away, she gripped his hands and looked into his eyes, tears running down her cheeks. "You grew up again," she laughed, her smile lighting up the dim atrium. "I got to see you grow up twice. I'm so old!"

He couldn't help but grin back. Saria laughed again, the sound better than any song, more healing than any remedy. She squeezed his hands, her smile never leaving, but turning wistful. "But you don't talk anymore, do you?"

Link felt the smile leave his face. He didn't want her to be sad, but he doubted he could talk even if he tried. His throat tightened and teeth grit together painfully. He shook his head.

"This world has done horrible things to you, Link," she said tearfully. "You deserve so much more. It's not fair."

_No, it's not_, he thought, shaking his head and pulling her close again.

He spent the rest of the day with her, laying on the rugs in the middle of the atrium, listening to her talk, her head lying on his chest, her small body curled against his, and her fingers playing with the strap of his sheath. When he finally fell asleep, it was the most restful sleep he had ever got in this life. Once he woke, he spent almost the rest of the day letting her take him on a tour back through the temple, which was now monster-free and truly breath-taking. He learned that she was now immortal as a Sage and while she _could_ leave the temple, she would only live for a few days. Her life force was now directly tied to the temple.

He thought it had to get boring all alone in the temple, but she seemed to read his mind and said, "People can still come visit _me_, though, silly! A few times I thought about telling Mido to bring you here so I could see you…but I knew he wouldn't. All the others refused as well. I hoped that one day you would just stumble upon this place."

She sounded so sad that he scooped her up and held her close, making her giggle. Eventually, he had to leave. He was running low on food and while he loved being with Saria, restlessness found its way back into him and she seemed to sense this.

"You should go to the lake, Link," Saria said, leading him back through the temple. "I can feel the unease in you. It has to be so hard having all those memories of those horrible things."

He nodded. The lake sounded like the perfect place for him to go next. He wouldn't go back to the temple, though. That place was one of the worst temples and like the Shadow Temple, he would never enter it again. Thinking about the lake, however, made him remember Sheik. After purifying the temple, he had resurfaced unconscious and horribly injured both physically and emotionally. Specifically the battle with his other self had left him exhausted. He had woken up on dry land, on the island in the middle of the lake, a warm fire in front of him and Sheik keeping vigil. For the next few days, Sheik had nursed him back to health, keeping him company and not only healing his body, but healing his mind. Remembering that pained him and Saria could sense it.

"There's something more that's troubling you, isn't there?" Saria asked, taking his hand and peering up into his eyes with a worried expression.

He couldn't lie to her; he pushed back a strand of her hair, sighed, and nodded. A far-away look passed her face, she closed her eyes, and she squeezed his hand tightly. Warmth spread through him and after a moment, she opened her eyes and looked back up at him.

"I think you should go to the desert instead," she amended. "I think it will hold more answers for you than the lake."

Link looked at her in confusion, but she smiled and shook her head. "Being a Sage has its perks. Just trust me."

He nodded slowly and after a moment, she pulled him down into a crouch, held his face with both hands, and kissed his forehead. Water gathered in her eyes and she said, "You will promise you'll come see me again soon?"

Emotion tugged at his throat and he nodded vigorously. Of course he would. How could she think he wouldn't? She cracked a smile, a tear rolling down her cheek. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a tan ocarina. "When the timeline was reset, this came back to me. I still want you to have it." Saria pushed it into his hands and continued. "I gave it enough magic that if you play the Minuet it will warp you back here. Do you still remember it?"

Link took the ocarina, feeling the crackle of magic lick his fingers. He nodded again; he remembered _all_ of the songs. He put the ocarina in his pocket and pulled her into another hug, feeling her tiny arms wrap around his neck like they've always belonged there. While it was sad that he couldn't have her in his life always, he could have her in his life quite a bit. She wasn't truly gone, only stuck in one place and immortal. Just like him, she was pulled into divine responsibility and they both had to live with it.

When they finally pulled away, he wiped her tears and kissed her cheek. "Be careful, Link."

He nodded like he always did. Leaving the temple felt like pulling his arm off, but once he was far enough away, his thoughts shifted to what she had told him. Why the desert? When he reached the outskirts of Kokiri village, he thought about just warping to the desert, but he decided against it. The idea of traveling with Epona warmed him and besides, she wasn't a desert horse. It was night by the time he passed through Kokiri village and didn't run into a soul, thankfully. As soon as he left the woods and found Epona, grazing in Hyrule field, he felt determined. Whatever Saria had seen or felt, he trusted it unconditionally. He would go to the desert and find his peace.

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Next chapter will be up soon!


	2. Chapter 2

|Chapter Two|

It took a little over a week to reach the pass to the Gerudo fortress. During his travels, he worried over what he would find there considering the Gerudo culture. Would it be as different as Kakariko was now or would it be exactly the same? Would they capture him and throw him in jail? When he reached the ravine – the bridge strong and intact – he decided he would essentially wing it. He would be able to tell within the first few seconds if they were going to try and slice his head off or not. Besides, he was actually far better trained in combat this time around and remembering a few tricks from his past life didn't hurt either.

Entering the fortress and being welcomed as a weary traveler was definitely not something he had expected. The Gerudo, specifically one of the Elders, had a vision that he would come and visit. Apparently she also knew of the past timeline and recognized him as the Hero of Time. Once again, he really hadn't expected such a nice reception, but he wasn't about to complain when they showed him to a room for the night, complete with a feather bed and impressive view of the desert.

For the next few days, he lived among the Gerudo, helping with whatever they would allow him and telling him stories about their culture and that of, surprisingly, the sheikah. Apparently the sheikah were originally a desert-race, sharing a close ancestry with the Gerudo. The two races went back and forth as being enemies and allies over thousands of years. They told him there were many sheikah still living, despite common misconceptions, but none of them practiced the same disciplines as the original tribe, not to mention that many were not full-blooded sheikah. The sheikah were a highly-magical race but the mixing of blood diluted the magic and because so many were raised by Gerudos or even some hylian parents, none of the old customs were upheld.

They then told him of a sheikah in the desert that was not only full-blooded, but was _raised_ as a sheikah. He was one of the last _true_ sheikah. At this, Link listened so intently, his head started to hurt. They told him nineteen years ago, there was a Great Dispute between all the different races of Hyrule. The settlement in Kakariko suffered the most, however. The sheikah in the desert was born in Kakariko, apparently, and was orphaned during an attack on the village. Impa, servant to the Princess, took him in and raised him for many years, in a cottage near Kakariko. When he turned fourteen, for reasons unknown, she sent him to live in the desert. He stayed in the Gerudo fortress for many years, but for the past four years, has been living alone where the old sheikah village used to be.

"He doesn't visit us much anymore," one of the Gerudo named Kaia explained. "A few months ago, he started acting strangely, like something was bothering him. He sought council from our Elder a few times, but he never seemed at ease. After a while, we stopped seeing him. I went out there a few times, just to make sure he was okay, but he wouldn't speak to me."

"All of the time we've known him, he's been troubled, though. Sometimes he would talk about these strange feelings he would get, like he was forgetting something incredibly important," a Gerudo named Rinwa said. "He's always seemed a bit restless. Sometimes he would talk about going to the castle, because he felt like he was supposed to find someone. Something always stopped him, though."

He suddenly found himself on his feet and squinting towards the dark horizon, as if he could see this mysterious sheikah. He wasn't completely sure what he was thinking, but he knew he needed to go find this sheikah…just to be sure…

"If you want to find him, his camp is west of the Spirit Temple," Kaia said, joining him by the gate. "You seem to not be at rest as well. Maybe you'll find your voice out there and you'll both find your peace."

He left before the sun rose, leaving Epona in Kaia's care. Link could remember trudging through the wasteland in another time and he wasn't really looking forward to it again, but he hoped that what he would find would be worth it. The trip would be a long one without a horse. Because he didn't want to wander aimlessly, he followed the markers to the temple, wishing he had the Eye of Truth when he got turned around three times. It took two days to reach the temple and he rested for one day, trying to keep from getting discouraged by the shapeless landscape and endless supply of sand that always seemed to get into uncomfortable places.

At one point, he did run into some bandits, who he had to kill despite his distaste for it. As he travelled west, however, the landscape started to change drastically. The ground became hard, cracked clay and craggly mountains lined the horizon like teeth. Scrub plants dotted his path and snakes, scorpions, and lizards were becoming so common he was practically stepping on them. Three days in, he started to see a thin, almost invisible line of smoke in the sky. Anticipation filled him and he sped up his pace.

He honestly didn't know what he was going to find when he got to where the smoke was. He had his ideas about who this man might be, but he didn't let his mind venture to far. Being a mute definitely had its disadvantages and when he _did_ stumble upon this campsite, he might just lose his head for being a speechless intruder. He remembered how stealthy and quick sheikah could be; he sincerely hoped this one wasn't jumpy.

The next day, he found the campsite. A little wooden hut was built in a small oasis, next to a tall, leafless tree. A little stream passed by the camp, coming down from the mountains, which fed into a small pond. There was a dying fire burning in front of the house, next to it several animal skins laid out to dry. By the fire was a piece of wood used as a chair and next to that were several arrows, some finished and some missing the arrowhead. One thing that captured his attention, however, was the weeping eye carved into the tree along with a phrase in the language of the sheikah. He had learned a bit of the language in his studies at the castle and translated it to the word "Forget".

As he got closer and closer to the camp, he realized that there was no one there. Drawn to the tree, he went to it, reaching out his hand to trace the weeping eye, then the word beneath it, wondering who it was that lived here and what had made them write something like.

Without any warning, a sharp pain hit his back with such force, he was knocked face-first into the tree. A knife touched his neck and a strong hand held his head to the tree. A body pinned him and a rough, accented voice in his ear said, "Who are you, hylian, and why are you here?"

The voice was agonizingly familiar, but the painful position blurred his thoughts. He knew he couldn't overpower this man. His throat closed up and he cringed as the knife dug into his throat. "Answer me. You're a royal guard. What does the princess want to take from me now?" he demanded harshly.

He tried to speak but nothing came out. Part of him thought he would die before he got to found out who this sheikah was and another part of him almost didn't mind. At least he didn't stay at the castle, wasting away and haunted by his past life. Before those thoughts went any further, his captor grabbed his arm and swung him around, his back now against the tree. He squinted in the sunlight as the sheikah gasped slightly and backed away from him like he was diseased.

Before him, now dressed in brown and grey fabric, stood Sheik. There was no way and it was completely impossible, but it was him, somehow. His skin was a little darker than he remembered, probably because he was living in the desert. He wore the same white cowl and bandages covered his arms and hands, but his wild blonde hair was free and whipping every which way in the hot breeze. The fabric clung to his body in a way very opposite of the billowing way of Gerudo clothing. Despite a few things, however, Sheik looked exactly the same as any of the days from his other life.

The shock devastated him; Sheik was real. The princess was hundreds of miles away in her castle.

For an incredibly long moment, it was silent. It seemed to take a moment to wind himself up again, but eventually Sheik said, "Why are you here?"

Link couldn't answer, no matter how hard he tried to force his teeth apart. If he could've spoken, he would've said, "Because I needed to find you, even though you aren't supposed to exist." Sheik stared at him, red eyes almost burning into his face; he had forgotten how intense the sheikah's stares could usually get. With a reaction like this, he was almost completely sure that Sheik remembered everything, especially considering what the Gerudos had told him about Sheik's behavior.

"You don't speak?" he asked, his voice changing suddenly. It wasn't quite as rough as before and it was a voice he could remember from the days that Sheik healed him after the Water Temple.

Link shook his head.

"Do…you remember?"

He nodded.

"Three months ago?" he went on, shoulders becoming rigid.

He nodded again.

"Does Zelda know you're here?" Sheik asked, looking almost…fearful?

Link shook his head quickly, hating that expression.

Sheik seemed relieved for a moment, but an unreadable expression quickly took its place. Suddenly, he turned away, going to the fire and nudging logs with a sword. His body was tense and Link could tell his mind was racing. Link's was too. He stayed leaned against the tree, watching the sheikah think and kindle the fire. He wasn't sure what to do anymore. Saria had been right; he found his answers in the desert…but now what did he do? A wave of hopelessness washed over him. He was pathetic and mute. He couldn't even talk to one of the most important people in his life and it seemed a growing trend that everything he thought was true was frequently overturned. It made him feel out-of-control.

"How many years have you been mute?" Sheik asked, glancing back at him.

Link held up seven fingers and the look in Sheik's eyes could've killed. He almost flinched, but then Sheik turned away quickly, anger rolling off of him like drops of water. Why? Why would Sheik be angry?

"I'm not supposed to exist, Link," he said, dropping the sword and sitting on the wooden stump. "Your presence here violates a contract…that existed in our other lives." He looked tired now, glancing up at Link with an expression that was both tired and somewhat disarming.

He slowly moved to the fire, his muscles aching from holding still for so long, and sat down across from the sheikah. Pulling out a scrap of paper and the piece of charcoal he always carried, he wrote, _The princess lied to me. You lied to me. _He didn't intend for it to seem angry and he tried to convey that in his face as he handed Sheik the note.

"I had no choice. I was locked in a blood oath. I guided you until the time you entered the Temple of Time, when she revealed herself." He sighed, pushing hair out of his eyes. The movement was never something Sheik would've done in their old lives and it captivated Link. "I wanted to tell you. The princess had an agenda, however. It happens to be an agenda that kept you alive, as well."

_What happened to you after she took your place?_ Link wrote, afraid of the answer.

Sheik stared at what he had written for a long moment, his expression hard. "She forbid me from seeing you; she needed your trust. She sent me out here and told me to wait until she reset the timeline. But that's not what she did. She created a _new_ timeline, almost exactly the same as the other one, and sent us there. We lost our memories in the process."

_So, in a sense, we don't belong here?_

"That's what I think," he replied. "Link…why did you come here?"

_Ever since I started remembering, I've been losing my mind. Zelda could handle remembering, but I couldn't. I left a few months ago and visited the places from my memories. I found Saria. She told me that I might find peace in the desert. I didn't expect to find you, but I'm glad I did._

After Sheik read his note, he went quiet for a long time. He let it fall to the cracked clay and stared at the fire, his eyes matching its intensity. Link wondered if Sheik was glad he came here too, or if was just getting in the way of his solitude. Overhead, a hawk passed over, crying out into the empty desert. The sun blared down and the wood of Sheik's hut creaked against the light, dry wind. Link watched him for a while, but then strayed to watching the fire as well, trying to see if maybe there was some hidden message inside the flickering tongues. The memories of before, travelling to Kakariko side-by-side, Sheik bandaging his wounds on Lake Hylia, helping him deal with the loss of Saria, all of it, running through his mind. So many emotions.

A weird feeling that had been growing in the pit of his stomach since seeing Sheik was real, flared even more at these memories. It was like the fire was inside _him_ instead of living on those logs. He didn't know what it was, but it made him want to fidget and walk around. He fought the urge and waited for Sheik to talk. He didn't know what would happen now that they had found each other. Did they have to go their separate ways because of the blood oath? The thought of that sent a flash of pain in his chest.

The sun was nearing the horizon by the time Sheik spoke again. He stood up, stretching slightly, and said, "It's time to hunt." He sheathed the sword in a belt at his hip and gathered a few finished arrows. After slinging an bow over his body, he motioned for Link to follow.

Link stood and followed him out of the camp and towards the mountains. It wasn't until the sun was past the horizon, however, did they reach them. It would've been darker if not for the full moon bleaching everything black and white. Goats and strange looking birds inhabited the mountain and after watching Sheik kill a few, he broke off and went after his own.

As he hunted, barely making a sound over the rocky paths – it was a skill he had picked up on from Sheik in his other life – he wondered if this meant he would be staying in Sheik's camp tonight. He didn't know what came next anymore. Even more, he didn't know if Sheik even wanted him here. Link tried to assure himself that if Sheik wanted him gone, he would've sent him away or killed him by now. Sheik seemed just as confused as him, though, Link thought. This Sheik was still the same one from long ago, but now troubled like him. Anger for Zelda swelled up in him as he shot his fifth bird. Had she even known what she was doing? All he could remember was watching her entertain nobles like it was her divine purpose, wearing fancy dresses, and signing papers with a rather gaudy white and gold quill.

She seemed fine, while him and Sheik were made to suffer.

"Link?" a voice said behind him for what he realized was the third time. He whirled around, caught off guard. Sheik stood there, several birds and two goats in tow, looking concerned. Link had been standing there for goddesses knew how long and the twinge in his feet was proof of that. He hadn't realized these thoughts had engulfed him so. "Are you alright?"

He nodded slightly, not really sure he actually was, but not wanting to worry Sheik. He knew that the sheikah didn't buy it – he never did – but he led the way back to the camp. Collectively, they had managed eleven birds and five goats. Sheik began bringing the fire back to life as Link started skinning the goats. They worked as a team, as if they had done this before…which they had. As he separated hide from muscle, Link realized how surreal this all really was. Not long again, he sat in the courtyard of Zelda's castle, patrolled the hallways, and never speaking or even _wanting_ to speak. Now he sat in the desert next to a man that had he thought was Zelda for three months now, praying to the goddesses that he could find the strength to speak.

For a while, skinning became monotonous and Link took to stealing glances at Sheik when he thought the sheikah wasn't looking. The bandages on his arms parted way to strips of flesh here and there, and the sight kept dragging him in. He wasn't really sure exactly what the sheikah customs were, but he felt as though Sheik were breaking them. He kept pushing his hair out his eyes with the back of his hand, his fingers covered in blood, and just that movement intrigued Link endlessly. He didn't realize that Sheik was stealing glances as well until their eyes met for a moment. Everything he saw now was like finally seeing the real Sheik. In the past, he had been so rigid like a stone wall, focused on the cause and pushing Link towards it. Sheik had really been primarily a guide first, and a friend second. There was no cause now, no threat, no claws dangling over the peaceful Kingdom. Did that mean he could now really know the true Sheik?

Hours passed into darker night and meat cooked over fire, filling the air with smells Link had been without for far too long. It wasn't until he sat there eating in silence, did he realize it had been days since he had really slept or eaten. Sheik ate facing the other way and Link wished so desperately that he could make an excuse to go closer and steal a look at his face. Words that he would never say kept forming on his lips and sometimes he mouthed the words, pretending as if he were speaking even though he hadn't heard his own voice in so many years. He couldn't remember what it sounded like anymore, something that made his stomach twist into an impossible knot.

It was not long after dinner that they were attacked.

There were eight of them, all dressed in black and dark silver armor, faces covered by frightening masks. The way they fought reminded Link of Sheik's fight style, yet not as disciplined. There wasn't much warning, but Link never went unarmed and it appeared as though Sheik didn't either. At once, Link was forced to focus on five of them, all moving like smoke in a windstorm. He was quick, but with five different assailants to track, injuries were unavoidable. He wasn't sure how Sheik was doing, but he could still hear the sheikah's voice so he let that sound calm his nerves. Two masked figures hit the ground and suddenly the lack of sleep and food caught up with him. He pushed through it, however, hacking away, the clashes of steel becoming a solemn mantra in the desert air.

"Duck!" Sheik growled from behind him.

As if they had been fighting together for years – and technically they had been – he crouched down, taking out one of his assailant's legs as Sheik impaled a throwing dagger into another one's skull. Cries of pain filled the air and Link rolled away just before a long sword hit the ground, sending a puff of powder into the air. Just as he managed to round on the man and send his sword through his heart, something sharp came down on his shoulder. It was a weak strike, luckily, but it knocked him off balance long enough for the warrior to wind up for a second, more fatal hit. Sheik blocked it, pushing Link backwards with his free arm.

Taking in his surroundings again, Link realized that only two men were still standing; one was now clashing with Sheik and the other charging straight for him. Within the few seconds he had, he saw that this man was the biggest one in the group, nearly three times bigger than himself. That wasn't the problem, though; Link had battle monsters hundreds of times bigger than him. The problem happened to be that he was starting to lose his strength and this man had a very, _very_ large broad sword. Realizing he couldn't take on the charge, he dodged it, the blade coming so close to his face, it sliced a swallow cut into his cheek.

As the man turned around, obviously dumbfounded considering the way he lumbered back around, he gathered as much strength as he could find and beheaded him. The body hit the ground a moment later and he shot his gaze to Sheik, who was pulling his sword out of his own enemy. Link shoved his own sword into the ground and leaned on it, trying to find his balance again. He was such a damned fool for not taking care of himself. He was wounded – albeit not mortally – and was also undernourished. Sometimes he wondered if he really just didn't care about whether he lived or died, though he had seemed to wonder that his whole life. Link always fought with a sort of refined, yet reckless abandon. Sheik had asked the very same thing in their other lives; he asked it now.

"Are you _trying_ to get yourself killed?" he demanded. Those crimson eyes assessed his condition, narrowed in anger. "You haven't been taking care of yourself, have you?"

Link gave up on looking at the sheikah. His shoulder hurt and his body was giving out on him. Taking care to avoid his wounds, Sheik wrapped an arm around his waist and helped him to the hut. The contact was warm and familiar, reminding Link that this really _was_ Sheik. Inside, it was dark and Sheik lowered him onto a cot, setting about lighting a lantern. Shadows cast across the sheikah's face and those red eyes glowed in the din. Sheik was beautiful, Link had decided a long time ago; nothing had changed over the number of years Link was still uncertain of.

Sheik dressed his wounds, hands as gentle as they had been on Lake Hylia. His eyes slowly lost their intensity and became soft and dark in the flickering lantern light. Once he was done, he settled onto the floor, back against the wall, and watched Link the same way he had every time he was injured. Link opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out; he didn't even know what he planned to say in the first place or if he even remembered how to speak. Disgusted with himself for being such a burden, he looked away from Sheik and stared at the ceiling, bits of moonlight leaking in through the cracks.

"I _am_ glad you're here," Sheik said quietly.

Link glanced over at him, surprised that he spoke at all. So he wasn't being a burden?

"You haven't changed, though," he went on. Link could tell he was smiling ever-so-slightly. "Still no regard for your own well-being."

Link shrugged with his good shoulder and smiled a little as well, thinking about all of the times he made stupid decisions that ended with him bandaged and Sheik telling him how much of an idiot he was. It made him happy to know that regardless of what had happened, nothing had _truly_ changed.

Sheik stood up and crossed the room, pulling something out of a box. He moved back to Link, holding out a rough piece of parchment and some charcoal. "Tell me what happened once she sent you back," he said.

Until Link could no longer keep his eyes open, he wrote out his life on the parchment. Sheik, in a way that Link had never seen him look before, leaned an elbow on the cot near Link's arm, rested his head in his hand, and read as he wrote. The position was so…_open._ He had to force himself to not look or he would stop writing altogether and just stare.

Sheik stayed silent the entire time and when Link started to doze as he wrote, the sheikah simply pulled the charcoal out of his hand and said, "You should sleep."

The lantern was blown out and Sheik leaned against the cot, so close to Link that he could reach out and touch his wild, blonde hair. In the darkness, he heard Sheik's voice say, "It's hard for me to think of how things would be different if Zelda had not meddled with time." There was a resigned sigh. "The world has been crueler to you because of it. After all the trials you endured during the war, you deserve so much better than this. I'm sorry, Link."

He wanted to stay awake and try to speak, but the warmth of those words sent him straight to sleep.

* * *

This is literally the most punctual I've ever been when it comes to updating. I'll probably post the next chapter tomorrow or the next day, depending on feedback and time. Thanks for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

|Chapter Three|

The next morning, Sheik set about burning the bodies of their attackers, making a pile of their weapons and supplies. Link tried to help, but Sheik wouldn't allow it; he settled for organizing their spoils from the men.

For the next few days, Sheik didn't let him go far. His wounds were still healing and the moment Sheik saw him without his armor and tunic, he was being handed double the food during meals. Link supposed he had gotten somewhat thin since leaving the castle, but he couldn't decide if it was serious or if Sheik was just being overprotective. The sheikah had been quite protective during the war, but Link had always assumed it was due to the fact that all of Hyrule relied on him. If Link was killed during those times, all would have been lost. There wasn't a war now, but Sheik still watched him like a hawk.

In all honestly, though, Link didn't mind in the least. The more time he spent here with Sheik, the more he started to remember just how vital the man was to his sanity. While the horrible restlessness was slowly starting to fade, a new feeling was seeping into its place. It was a jittery feeling he got every time Sheik's fingers brushed his skin while he changed Link's bandages. It was the little jolt in his stomach when he caught Sheik looking at him. It was the way his heart sped up slightly when he saw Sheik doing something mundane like pushing his hair out of his eyes or the way he truly could _not_ sit still. At first glance, it looked as though the sheikah could sit perfectly still for centuries. Link soon found that even if Sheik sat around the fire for a few minutes, he would invariably start moving his fingers or bouncing his leg or even taping out some rhythm with his fingertips.

As the days turned into almost two weeks, it was time to hunt. At the rate that Sheik was shoving food at Link, it wasn't a huge surprise. Unfortunately, Link couldn't scribble fast enough to argue with his companion about his presence on this hunting trip. This was one of those occasions that being mute was an _enormous_ disadvantage. The idea of Sheik going out there on his own worried far more than it should considering he'd been living out here for a long time.

"You're still healing," Sheik insisted while gathering up arrows, "and knowing you, you'll do something stupid the moment I look away."

Link glared daggers at him, which earned him a firm look from Sheik.

"I'm not saying you're incapable of hunting," he amended. "But having you out there with me is going to distract me."

Link stared in confusion. Why would his presence be a distraction? That strange feeling welled up inside him again as his mind flashed through the implications. Sheik saw the confusion and looked at him with a calculating sort of gaze. He strapped on his sword and pulled the bow over his body.

"I worry about you enough as it is, Link."

A moment later, he left. Link sat there trying to decide what Sheik meant. His insides fluttered oddly. Maybe he meant just that, though. He was always getting himself into trouble; Sheik would have to watch over him like a child if he went along for the hunting trip. The thought twisted his insides into a vicious knot and he found he couldn't move for a long time. When he finally could, he forced himself to stand and go back into the hut. Everything inside smelled like Sheik: sandalwood, burning sage, and the slight dusty smell from the desert. The inside itself was very plain, which hadn't surprised Link at all, but as he half-heartedly snooped around, he found that there were plenty of personal affects hidden away. As curious as he was, he refrained; the last thing he needed was to offend the Sheikah on _top_ of being a burden.

The sun had sunk a quarter in the sky when Sheik came back, laden with his kills. He refused to allow Link to help him haul the heavy carcasses up onto the wooden rack, insisting that he still needed to favor his wounded shoulder. It only made the knot in his gut twist impossibly tighter. By dinner – after Sheik had handed double his own serving to Link – the Sheikah knew Link was perturbed.

"Something's troubling you," he stated, giving Link an even look with those clear, red eyes.

Link didn't want to lie, but yet he didn't want to have to pull out the paper and attempt the impossible task of trying to explain how he felt without feeling like a ridiculous child. So he did the only thing he knew how to do: stay silent.

"Are you still offended by what I said earlier?" Sheik offered.

_Offended_ wasn't the right word, but Link didn't know what the right word _was_. He sat still, staring at the ground and desperately trying to determine his next action. Link was sure Sheik would push the matter but, surprisingly, he didn't. Silence fell between them once more and Link was left wondering if this subject would be brought up later or not.

For the rest of the night, Sheik fixed things here and there, skinned his kill, and threw unreadable glances at Link. He found it interesting that their situation made Sheik seem almost talkative. Back in another time, he only said what was necessary for the next temple (and now that he thought about it, probably what Zelda had told him to say) and hardly anything else aside from telling him how careless he was. With Link now mute, Sheik was doing all the talking. It was a horrible pair when one considered just how little conversation was actually occurring. They communicated with looks more than anything, however. When that failed, then the words came. But with the way Sheik was looking at him, it was apparent that looks were working just fine. While he couldn't read them, they pinned him to the spot every time he met their gaze.

After hours of silence, Sheik told him to sit – he'd been pacing around like a lunatic – and he brought out fresh bandages. This was their nightly routine but this time Link felt far more nervous having the Sheikah's breath barely touching his neck, his bandaged fingers ghosting over his skin. He knew he wasn't afraid that the man would harm him, but there was a kind of intensity between them that gave him cause for worry.

Slowly and carefully Sheik unwrapped his wound, inspecting it with narrowed eyes. "It's almost healed now," he said quietly, voice muted even more by his cowl.

Link just nodded, afraid to meet those eyes.

Sheik soundlessly rewrapped the wound, putting only one layer of bandages on this time. When he was finished, Link waited for him to move away…but he didn't. He stayed crouched next to Link, eyes fixed on the wounded shoulder. He wasn't there, though. His mind was wandering so far away his eyes dimmed. Link realized he was staring and quickly looked at the fire. This movement seemed to rouse Sheik from his reverie and it became a childish game of avoiding the other's gaze.

Link knew he was being an idiot. Sheik probably knew that too. Emotions eluded Link, however, regardless of where he was in whatever timeline. These were especially confusing emotions as well, so Link honestly didn't have much of a chance. With Sheik still sitting there so close, Link could feel the knot starting to overwhelm him. What in the goddesses was this? He needed time to think and he needed time to cool off. He got up, forcing himself to keep his eyes from the Sheikah, and walked out of the camp.

Link could feel the Sheikah's eyes watching him, but he didn't say a word. Sheik might've gotten up and started following him silently, but as long as he didn't see him, he didn't care. The night was cool and calm. His hair had gotten a bit longer since leaving the castle; it barely brushed his shoulders, though it had nothing on Sheik's, which was just past his shoulder blades.

Ugh. There he went thinking about Sheik again.

He wanted to clear his mind out here, not fill it up with more confusing thoughts! But it was futile, he found, as the minutes ticked by and he walked over still-warm, cracked clay. So, maybe he'd have to think about the Sheikah to get to a clear mind. That would be his luck.

About two hours later, he found _some_ sort of clarity.

As he followed his footsteps back through the shrub plants and rocks, he came to his conclusions: he was far more attached to Sheik than he ever thought possible. Everything the Sheikah did and said affected him more than anyone else. Once he admitted that to himself, it was much like opening the flood gates. Now that he found him, Link didn't want to let go. He wanted to stay with Sheik forever. But even more than that, he wanted to…_touch_ him. That part confused him. He didn't know why he did. It made him feel like a child. Was it something like that strange kiss Malon had given him a month ago? Did he like Sheik…like _that_?

Link blushed the whole way back.

When he returned, Sheik was sitting at the fire, more jittery than normal. He was poking almost angrily at the fire and he kept moving his legs like he was trying to keep warm. There was a frustrated look in his eyes and for a moment, Link just had to stop and stare; the sight was actually endearing. Link didn't know what had him so agitated, but the more he stared, the more he smiled and realized that he thought it was adorable. Sheik was beautiful…but then he was adorable. The combination felt foreign to him, especially accompanied with the fluttery feeling in his now un-knoted stomach. He didn't get much more time to observe Sheik, however. The Sheikah jumped up the moment he caught sight of Link. There was in a look in his eyes that was now bordering on…panic?

"I thought you were leaving." He didn't say 'leaving _me_', but he might as well have. His voice was monotone but his eyes burned. The words quite literally broke Link's heart. Those red eyes were an unbearable mixture of sad and worried. Link had never seen Sheik be so emotive.

Despite Sheik's sudden exposure of emotion, the fact that the sheikah even thought Link would just leave so abruptly was rattling. Link vigorously shook his head, walking closer to the fire and out of the darkness. Maybe if Sheik saw his now calm face, he would be that way as well. As Link got closer, Sheik's eyes darted back and forth over his face, trying to read him.

After a long moment, Sheik turned and picked some paper and charcoal up from the ground; by now there were scraps of paper with scattered one-sided conversations on them everywhere. He handed them to Link and said, "Why were you so bothered that you had to go away?"

Link stared at the paper, mind drawing a blank as he tried to think of a suitable response. There was really no way he could admit his feelings – whatever they were – to Sheik…so maybe sticking to his first feeling was the best option: the fear of being a burden.

_I feel like I'm a burden to you. I don't want you to have to take care of me like I'm some idiot child. _

It only took Sheik a moment to read it and then scowl. "You're not a burden. I've been alone, haunted by memories of you, for half my life." His eyes softened. "And sometimes you do reckless things, but you're not an idiot. You're just so…you don't think about yourself first."

As he handed the parchment back, Link was still stuck on 'haunted by memories of you'. Link had been haunted by memories of Sheik more than anything; had it been the same for Sheik? He didn't want to ask. There was only one thing he _could_ think to ask.

_What do we do now?_

Sheik read it and gave him a long look. He sighed and crossed his arms across his chest, a pose that took Link back to the days of the Imprisoning War. "I don't know, Link." He paused for a moment, looking up at the star-filled sky, his cowl slipping a little bit down his nose, drawing in Link's eyes. "The princess will want to know where you are eventually. I can tell by your armor that you're her personal guard now and, considering she remembers that you're the Hero of Time, she'll be quite frantic to know you're safe. I'm not sure how she'll react if she knows that you've found the truth about our identities. I don't even know if the blood oath is really even valid anymore."

Link reached forward and snatched the parchment out of his hands and hastily wrote, _I don't care what she thinks. The desert is outside of her jurisdiction. Besides, I think I've earned the right to know the truth after all the horror I've been through._

Red eyes widened a bit as he read Link's handwriting. Link himself didn't know where the anger came from, but the thought of Zelda trying to punish Sheik for letting this happen made him see red. He still couldn't even understand her motive for lying about it in the first place. She was probably the last person he needed to see any time soon.

"You _have _earned it," Sheik said softly, lowering the note and giving him a gentle look that Link had never seen before. "You've earned even more than that; the right to be happy. But you can't find that, can you?"

He hesitated for a moment, but slowly shook his head. Link had never admitted anything like that before nor let anyone in that deep to his true feelings.

"Neither can I," Sheik said. His voice was hollow and his eyes drifted to the cracked clay beneath them. The red eyes were heavy with sadness in a way that looked suffocating. Link knew what that felt like.

He moved without thinking.

It only took two steps to be in front of Sheik and just one short motion to pull him into his arms. His shoulder stung, but he couldn't even acknowledge it. Sheik stiffened like a board in his arms and Link wasn't surprised. He doubted the Sheikah was frequently touched by others. Honestly, he wasn't touched by a lot of people either; being mute deterred people from getting close. With Sheik – a quiet one like him – it drew them together. After a very long, unsure moment (Link had held his breath the whole time), Sheik finally reacted, wrapping his arms around the hylian's back and pressing his face into an unwounded shoulder. They held onto each other as if letting go meant drifting away into oblivion. Sheik was endlessly warm; Link hadn't realized how cold he had gotten.

He felt a lot of things, standing there and holding onto Sheik, but he was mostly shocked. In hindsight, Sheik could've pushed him away…but he didn't. Did he need this as much as Link did? Regardless of how many bandages Sheik wrapped around him, the embrace was far more healing. Link was sure he could've fallen asleep like that, but a loud cry of a hawk interrupted them. The sheikah jolted in his arms and snapped his head up, muscles rigid as stone. Link looked up as well and immediately understood why Sheik had tensed; it was a royal messenger hawk.

Speak of the devil.

They separated as the hawk – a chestnut colored bird with tawny eyes – swooped down towards them, dropping a letter from its talons. The parchment hit the ground between them and flapped away into the still night. Link's heart thumped against his sternum as he watched Sheik crouch down and pick up the letter. The crest of Hyrule was pressed into a golden wax seal and it made his stomach churn. Horrible ideas of what that letter would contain plagued his mind, wreaking havoc on his composure. Sheik looked nervous too, though.

As he opened it, Link waited with bated breath, eyes fixed on the Sheikah's obscured face. His red eyes darted back and forth, widening at some points and narrowing at others. After a moment, he seemed to reread it, then slowly fold it again, staring off in thought. Link, nervous and desperate to know what the princess wanted, took a step forward.

"She wanted to know if I remembered…" Sheik said, glancing up at Link with still far-away eyes, "and if I would find you for her. She's worried about you."

Relief filled him. If Zelda wanted Sheik to find him, then the blood oath was broken. Sheik looked relieved as well, but something else was picking at his mind now, he could tell. Link watched – as they made their way to the hut for the night – something worked rigidity into his shoulders and tightened his jaw. They were both tired, however, and Link didn't know if he wanted to go any further into emotional territory tonight. He pushed Sheik towards the cot – he'd been forcing Link to take it for far too long – and immediately took up Sheik's spot on the floor, forcing the other to take the bed. Sheik scowled but caved in.

* * *

Sorry I was a little later than expected. Midterms are this week and I've had a super busy week. Hope you enjoy this chapter!


	4. Chapter 4

|Chapter Four|

Sleep was full of the same nightmares he always had and when he woke in the morning, they wouldn't relinquish their grip on him. It took longer than it had ever taken to find his grip on reality once more; he curled up with his back against the wall, face in his knees, and arms secured around his legs like they were shackled that way. Voices howled in his ears and the scrape of iron swords was a physical sensation on his spine. Images of the war, monsters, and bodies flashed in his eyes like lightning. When Sheik entered the hut to find him nonresponsive and unmoving, it took him an hour to coax Link back into the living world. Sheik pulled him close and whispered words in another language. He couldn't understand them, but they soothed him in a way that only magic could.

When he found a sort of composure, Sheik pulled away and asked, "Does this happen often?"

Link nodded, feeling vaguely embarrassed but mostly exhausted. Sheik pulled him outside into the sunlight, away from the shadows of the hut. This time, the sheikah let him help with daily tasks. He set about sharpening their swords and arrow heads as Sheik went down to the creek to clean laundry and bloodied bandages. After a while, Link found he had nothing left to sharpen and nothing left to distract himself from both the lingering uneasiness of this morning's nightmares and yesterday's stress and confusion. Despite it all, however, he knew one thing for certain:

He wanted to be near Sheik.

Link followed the worn little path to the creek, avoiding a poisonous sand snake as he went; they stayed away from the camp, but during the day they came out to soak up the sun's warm. Sheik sat cross-legged on the small bank, tying the cloth to a stick and letting it sit in the water's flow. He still couldn't get over the sight of seeing Sheik doing something so mundane. All of this seemed so trivial compared to the divine tasks they had been handed before.

As he approached, Link could tell Sheik was lost in thought as he sat down next to him. Those red eyes sank into the moving water, weighed down by sadness and confusion. Like always, Link wished he could see into that mind.

Sheik suddenly seemed to notice Link's presence and shook his head slightly, glancing over at him. "Are you feeling better?"

Link hesitated, but nodded. He felt a little better since this morning, but all things considered, he still felt confused and frustrated. While he had come to somewhat of a half-conclusion last night, Sheik's unease after reading the Princess's letter only increased his stress. What had that letter contained that would make Sheik so bothered? He wanted to ask; in fact, his almost opened his mouth to speak, but his jaw locked tight and his teeth refused to pry apart.

"I miss hearing your voice," Sheik said quietly, looking back to the stick in the water. Link found himself hopelessly thrown off-guard. He…what? Link hadn't thought his voice was anything special, although the last time he had heard it was over seven years ago. He stared at the sheikah, trying to see into his mind and read his thoughts; none of this was helping his confused state-of-mind.

As the day passed, Sheik read from a worn book with a red cover and Link wandered the outskirts of the camp, avoiding scorpions and snakes as he went. The more he circled, the more he wondered what the hell he was doing out here anymore. Maybe he should ask Sheik if he wanted to come back with him to Hyrule. Maybe the seclusion of this little camp in this enormous desert was finally getting to him. Or maybe it was just the frustration with himself. He couldn't speak, so he couldn't tell Sheik all these things he was feeling. He didn't know if Sheik would understand or even care. He didn't know if Sheik really wanted him around or even – as impossible as it probably was – felt the same.

Link didn't want to say he loved Sheik; he had often heard the women in the castle talking about love-at-first-sight. They would see a knight come to the castle and they would fawn over him in the most lowly and pathetic ways Link had even had the horror of seeing. They acted like moths drawn to candlelight. That was Link's only real exposure to what love was. While he knew there had to be more to it than that…he didn't know _what_. He knew that he couldn't be without Sheik now that he knew the truth. Link felt like he had accepted that even _before_ he knew the truth. Sheik had been what pulled him away from the castle and out into the wilderness again. But all these feelings…were they love?

When night fell, he was still wandering. He probably would've kept wandering if Sheik hadn't come to find him, looking a bit nervous. Sheik took his arm – his skin was so _warm – _tugging him back towards the camp, and said, "Come back to camp, please?"

Link, slightly startled, gave him a questioning look.

Suddenly, Sheik looked…was he _flustered_? "I don't want you wandering out here at night. It puts me on edge." He didn't look Link in the eyes as he pulled him back towards camp, letting go after a few moments. Link followed, trying to figure out why someone as solemn as Sheik would _ever_ get flustered.

As soon as they got back, Link couldn't help but snatch up some paper and write, _How does my wandering put you on edge?_

Sheik seemed to get a little bit flustered once more as he said, "I worry about you."

The flutter in Link's chest made him want to squirm. He watched the sheikah break some sticks in half and toss them into the fire, pointedly not looking at Link. He grabbed the paper again and scribbled, _I'm the Hero of Time. I think I can take care of myself._

When Sheik read it, Link could tell he smiled a bit. "I know, _Hero_," he said, using his old title from the days of the Imprisoning War.

It was soon time for sleep and when they entered the hut, Sheik didn't go to the cot. Instead, he sat down next to Link on the floor and said, "When's the last time you tried to speak?"

Parchment and charcoal were pushed into his hands and he wrote, _I don't remember. Probably when I still lived in Kokiri._

"You never tried to speak to Zelda?"

_Everytime I try, my jaw locks up and I can't even open my mouth._

Sheik went quiet, eyes studying him for a moment, then sliding away and staring off in space. Link just watched, studying for the millionth time, all the little things about the sheikah that he that he never got to observe the first time around, in that other timeline. Sheik sat half cross-legged with one leg bent up, his elbow resting on his knee, his fingers lost in his wild hair. He sat like a statue except for the fingers of his other hand which tapped against the floor.

He wrote again. _Why do you ask?_

Sheik glanced at the parchment when Link held it up and sighed. "I want you to speak again. I want to help you."

Link blinked at this. Help him? His stomach fluttered – which it did a lot of these days – and he couldn't help but write, _Why?_, pushing the charcoal harder into the parchment as if to stress the question.

Sheik's eyebrows furrowed disbelief as he read. "You honestly haven't realized it yet?"

Link shook his head, wondering what in the world he had missed. He had been literally staring at the sheikah for weeks now. What could he have _possibly_ missed?

Sheik leaned back against the cot, letting his hand dangle in front of him, suspended by his knee. It was such an open and carefree stance, a vast contrast between now and the days of the war. "You're all I have Link. There's nothing else for me here in this world. Before you showed up, I had decided to venture into Hyrule and find you, blood oath or not. Zelda says that we remember because there is a connection between us and our other timeline. She can live with it because she found her place here. You can't live with it because you've lost your voice and you've allowed the memories to overtake you. You've let yourself become isolated."

Link let the words sink in. Even as he processed the words, _You're all I have_ rang out through his head like church bells. He had isolated himself? He hadn't noticed. He was used to being alone in his own silent world. He didn't have words or people. All he had were nightmares and the feeling he was forgetting something so very important. Maybe…he _had_ isolated himself. A question pulled at his mind, however. _Why can't you live with it?_ he wrote.

Sheik paused, red eyes steaming into his like lava sinking into water. "Because I need you."

He didn't know what to say; he simply stared back into those fiery depths, wondering if he had lost his hearing as well. Did this mean Sheik…felt the same as he felt? Link didn't know what to write in return. Even if he could've spoken, he wouldn't have known what to say. Before he could reach for the parchment yet again, Sheik stood in one fluid and graceful movement. Without another word, he blew out the candle and went to bed, leaving Link to sit there, heart pounding, and endlessly confused.

Moonlight slithered through the cracks in the wood. It licked the wood grains like luminescent, silver paint. In the half-light he could see Sheik's silhouette, moving ever so slightly as he breathed. Link wanted nothing more than to get up and run his fingertips over his shoulder and down the curve of his back. He fought the urge valiantly and just watched the rise and fall slow down into sleep.

Sheik needed him; he had admitted it. Link still didn't know what to quite make of it all. He hated the fact that his muteness was somehow harming Sheik. That's the last thing in he wanted in the world. He didn't do well with considering himself to be somehow broken. He was the Hero of Time for goddess's sake! However, he had isolated himself. That he could agree with now. Maybe Sheik was to be the one that would heal him. Maybe they would be the ones to heal _each other_. Link shook his head slightly. Sheik shouldn't _have_ to heal him. He shouldn't be broken in the first place.

Movement in front of him pulled him out of his thoughts. Sheik had rolled over and was staring at him with glowing, dark red eyes. Link stared back, wondering if he was somehow dreaming. The scene was so surreal-looking with the glowing eyes and moon-bleached background. "I can hear you thinking from over here. Steam will come out of your ears if you don't watch yourself," he said almost in a whisper, propping his head up on his hand.

Link shrugged. When one didn't speak, they were only left to thoughts.

Suddenly, Sheik slid out of bed again and onto the floor. He still looked slightly groggy and Link realized that hours must've passed in the time he watched Sheik sleep – it normally took him a while to get to sleep. "Can't sleep?" he asked quietly.

Link shook his head.

"Nightmares?"

He shrugged once more. In some ways, his nightmares were always haunting him. It wasn't something he wanted to admit to, especially to Sheik. Link averted his gaze from Sheik's glowing eyes, trying to focus on the grains in the wood floors. Sheik was making him jumpy with that slightly sleepy stare; he looked…vulnerable.

"Lay down, Link," he said softly.

He stared at the sheikah in surprise, but obeyed. The moment he let his head touch the floor, a bandaged hand hovered over his forehead and barely touched his skin. As if those fingers were pushing his eyes shut, darkness overtook him and the now-familiar pull of Sheik's magic flooded his skin. A strange, buzzy warmth spread first through his eyes, then into his mind. It snaked its way into his limbs, crawling down his torso, and curling into his stomach. His body was calm, something he hadn't felt in so long. His mind was placid. Why hadn't Sheik tried this sooner?

He felt Sheik's hand finally touch his forehead, almost caressing him. A hot spike went through his stomach at the sensation, very different from the warmth that had occupied it previously. Sleep was now the very last thing on his mind and Sheik was the very first. His eyes fluttered open and met the red gaze of the sheikah. Before he could think to stop himself, he reached up, brushing his hand past the other's covered cheek. Those red eyes seemed to glow brighter in the dim light of the room. His heart pounded as he realized what he had just done.

"Link…" Sheik said quietly.

Then, suddenly, Sheik rose and left the hut. Link blinked in surprise, the warmth of the sheikah's magic leaving him as though cold water had been doused on his head. Rejection flowed through him…but so did determination. Those eyes weren't of disgust; there had been something there he couldn't read. He hadn't come all this way for this. Sheik wouldn't have bothered to help him or said all of those meaningful things if he didn't actually care.

_Because I need you_.

Sheik needed him. He had admitted that hours ago. Link rolled to his feet, dizzy from the magic. After a minute to regain his footing, he made his way outside. The moon was nearly full, dousing the camp in shadowy light. It was just enough to make out shapes but no details. He could see Sheik standing near where the fire had been; it was just dull ambers now. Link took a breath, steadying himself as though he were about to face a monster. As he reached Sheik's side, he could see that lithe form…shaking?

Link touched his shoulder, wishing he could ask if everything was okay. Sheik looked at him, trapping him in that gaze again. It really wasn't fair, either. Impa was good at it too, so Link had to assume that it was a sheikah ability. He gave Sheik a questioning look, hoping to convey his meaning.

"I'm fine."

Link narrowed his eyes. Sheik opened his mouth to insist, but Link decided he didn't want to hear it. He had always been the type to charge in with reckless abandon, anyway. Wasn't Sheik perpetually getting onto him about that?

He leaned in, his other hand sliding past Sheik's cheek to push away the cowl, and brushed their lips together. It was soft enough like a question and firm enough like he already knew the answer. And luckily he had been right. It only took a moment, but Sheik reacted and pulled Link closer. Desperately closer. Just like when they had held each other the other night, emotions broke loose and they held on desperately as though all they had left in the world was each other.

When Sheik pulled away to breathe, Link suddenly couldn't. Those eyes found his and they read surprise, confused, but…happy. He found air again and nearly gasped from holding it for so long. Sheik's long arms were still wrapped around his waist and, if anything, held him tighter. As their eyes remained locked, Link couldn't even register that Sheik's cowl was now pulled away because of the weird sensation started sprinting through Link's mind. It was crushing and deafening. Before he knew it, he was starting to shake, gripping to Sheik even tighter. His eyes blurred and he felt weak.

He was frightened.

He hadn't felt anything intensely since…never. Maybe in the other timeline. But never in this one. It felt like his bones would rattle apart and he would be torn to pieces in the process. Link buried his face in Sheik's neck, holding on for dear life as wave after wave of now sharp and aching sensation passed through him. He could hear Sheik speaking, but it was unintelligible to him. Whatever was happening to him wasn't going to let go for Sheik.

A roaring entered his ears and the world was shaking under his feet. Light flashed against his eyelids. He felt himself be ripped away from the warmth of Sheik and into a void.

* * *

_Somewhere, caught in the nether, he was ripped in two. Part of him stayed, part of him left. The part of him that stayed promised that he would never feel again:_

The one thing I swore I'd never do.

_The part of him that left promised that he would always feel, even when there was nothing left to feel:_

The one thing I swore I'd never do.

_Above all, he had promised to himself that he wouldn't let war change him. He would still keep himself. And then he was between times and between worlds, those words had been skewed by the chaos. _

_Why had he let that happen?_

_Why had he let it take his voice?_

_Now here he floated, back to the nether. Where was Sheik? Had he even been real? What if he had never found Sheik in the desert? What if he had actually died in the Imprisoning War? This place was both bright and dark, utterly indescribable; it could quite possibly be death._

_But then there was something in front of him._

_A thin boy dressed in green floated in front of him. He was much brighter than Link himself, almost glowing. This boy was identical to him. Suddenly, every cell in his body was pulling towards this bright Link with a sort of warm magnetism. He obeyed, too curious and weak to fight._

_Their fingertips touched and-_

* * *

Link sat bolt upright, a wild cry escaping his lips. The room was dim and warm. Light from the lanterns outside outlined the edges of furniture in his room. This wasn't Sheik's hut…but what about Ganondorf and the castle? Why did he feel like he had just defeated that monster again? His body ached and he could feel bandages on his body. Confusion made him dizzy and disoriented. He started to feel his way to the edge of the bed but a distinctive voice cut through him, stopping him in his tracks.

"Link! Don't you dare get out of that bed! You're nowhere near ready to be up and around!"

He whipped around – which hurt – and took in a sight he felt like he had just seen yesterday, but yet not for ages. Navi fluttered in front of him, looking stern with her arms crossed and sharp eyebrows arched. But Navi was supposed to be gone. When Zelda reset the timeline, Navi didn't come to him. Why was she here now? Regardless, he had missed her terribly. He held out his hand to her and she smiled, landing on his palm and hugging his thumb.

"You did it, Link. You saved Hyrule, the princess, _everyone_."

Oh. That's right. He had just saved Hyrule. Somehow, someway, he was back. Back to the old timeline. But.

_Sheik_.

Zelda wasn't Sheik. Zelda wasn't Sheik.

_Zelda wasn't Sheik_.

Before Navi could say anything else, he bolted out of bed. He almost crumpled to the floor, but panic kept the adrenaline pumping through his veins, keeping him off the ground. He shot out of the room, down the stairs, and out into what he now recognized as Kakariko village. He had been in the old Inn, in the center of the village. If Zelda was going to be anywhere near him right now, she would be at the pub. He had to get to her, find Sheik, do _something._

He burst into the pub, making several people jump or cry in surprise. He scanned the faces, immediately noticing a group of people towards the back, all making worried sounds. Link moved forward, craning to get a look. The busty bartender and a dark-haired man were helping a young, blonde girl off the floor.

Zelda.

"Ya just passed out, ya did! Have ya been eatin' okay, your highness?" the bartender fussed, putting a hand to the princesses' forehead.

"I…I don't know…" Zelda murmured, squinting at the light in the pub. After a moment, her eyes seemed to find Link, as if she knew he would be there. They widened. "_Link_!"

She shook off the people around her and stumbled to him. "Link! What happened?"

He didn't know what to say. Link stared at her in shock. Things were starting to piece together now.

"How are we back here? This was hours before I reversed the timeline!" she cried, looking frightened.

Link suddenly had no patience for her fear. There was only one person he cared about right then. He reached out and dragged a nearby table to him, pulling the dagger out of his boot. _WHERE IS SHEIK_? he carved viciously into the wood.

Her eyes filled with tears as she read the ragged words. They streamed down her face as she looked back up at him. "Link…I'm so sorry I lied."

Rage filled him. He drove his dagger through the table, making a noise so loud she flinched.

"The desert!" she cried. "He's in the desert!"

He didn't give her a second glance. Link ran out of pub and into the night, heading for the stables. When he reached Epona, Navi was waiting, looking livid. She opened her mouth to say something, but Link cut her off, holding his hand out in a _stay_ gesture. He gave her a pleading gaze. _Please, Navi. I have to go_, he thought desperately. A moment passed and the stubborn fairy seemed to get it. She sighed and crossed her arms. "I don't know what you're doing, but it must be important if you're giving me a look like that. Please don't get yourself killed. You have a country to help rebuild, Link."

* * *

Only one chapter left!


	5. Chapter 5

This chapter is super short. Forgive me, but that's just the way I split it up. Thanks to everyone who reviewed! I really appreciated it! If you have any suggestions on what I should write for this ship next, PM me!

* * *

The desert had a certain sting to it that no other place could possibly hope to possess. It was funny, really. He stormed through there twice now, this time with nothing but pants, boots, and a lot of bloody bandages. The sun and moon chased each other around the sky as he slaved his way across the desert, running low on rations that the Gerudo's had been kind enough to provide for him. When he wasn't worried he would die before he saw Sheik's face again, he wondered if Sheik would realize what had happened, if he would survive the disorienting confusion and wait for Link to come for him. Would he think everything had been a dream? Would he even remember like Link and Zelda seemed to? Would he even want to see Link?

As the craggily mountains finally cut the horizon, his exhaustion seeped deeper into his bones. His destination would be his current location very soon. It was just like the last time he had done this…whenever the hell that was. He didn't know anymore. All he knew was the sun was perched on the mountains and the tree and the hut were so close. His vision blurred, dehydration finally slowing him down. The jog turned to a walk and the walk to a stumble.

What if Sheik wasn't even here? What if Sheik wasn't even real? What if, what if, what if-

He saw a lithe form exit the hut. His heart rate picked up and he tried to move faster. Sheik caught sight of him and froze. Link probably looked like a wild animal by this point. Maybe Sheik would feel endangered and kill him. That would be a horrible ending. And as if on cue, his legs gave out. He could make out Sheik's eyes, he was so close. Yet far enough away that he still might not recognize Link.

But he did.

"Link!"

Sheik was moving unnaturally fast, as he always did, but there was something different about the way his covered that distance in an almost desperate way. It answered a couple questions.

"You bloody idiot!" Sheik swore, crouching down in front of him. "Link, you are endlessly and hopelessly stupid! What is wrong with you?" Link really couldn't help but grin as Sheik glared at him, moving bandages and checking his heart rate. "You just finished destroying Ganondorf and you charge across this goddess forsaken desert? Why?"

Link really couldn't help it at this point. Here was Sheik, the only person he loved – yes, _loved_ – in this world, here, and yelling at him for being reckless. Nothing had changed, really. He felt whole now, something he hadn't felt since...goddess knows. The timeline was a disaster-zone at this point. He reached out and yanked the sheikah towards him, wrenching the cowl out of his way. He sealed their lips and held on for dear life.

Sheik made a frustrated, but defeated sound against his lips. Warm arms circled around him, dragged him closer, and held him tight. Complete. Everything was complete. How had he ever been okay without Sheik? How had he ever done anything without this person in his life?

When they broke apart, Link opened his mouth and said, "Why would you think I wouldn't cross a desert for you twice?"

Sheik's eyes went wide. Wider than Link had ever seen, actually. But why?

"Your voice…"

Oh. That's why.

"Your voice is back," the sheikah said, his own voice catching.

Link lay on the bed in Sheik's hut, dozing in and out of consciousness. A magic-induced numbness flowed through his body, keeping the pain of his injuries at bay. Curled around him was a thin, strong body, holding him close and still. Even though Sheik was still mad at him, he was happy. Blissfully happy. The hole in his chest, the ache in his heart, and the haunting images and nightmares in his head were gone.

"You know, I've felt like this for a long time," Sheik sighed, breaking the hours-long silence. His breath ghosted on Link's neck.

"What do you mean?" Link asked, the vibration past his vocal chords the second-best feeling he had experienced in days.

"_This_," he stressed, kissing Link's neck from his jaw, down to his collarbone.

"Oh."

Link smiled sleepily. It might have been minutes or seconds later – he wasn't sure – but he remembered they were speaking. "Why didn't you tell me? Or do something?"

"Because," Sheik replied, "it's the one thing I swore I'd never do."

"That's a silly thing to swear. I've always loved you." He chuckled, finding it funny and somehow cruel that they had always felt the same for each other, but resolutely did nothing about it. "After all we've been through…how could I _not_?"

Sheik sighed, hot breath warming Link's neck. "During the war…well, _now_…I'm your guide and nothing more. The blood oath was very specific about that. I couldn't let myself love you. In the other timeline…I was just too confused. I knew the timeline was unstable. I knew Zelda had done something wrong. I didn't want to make any decisions until I knew what was happening."

Link closed his eyes, turned his head and pressed his nose to Sheik's wild hair. "Why do you think Zelda made another timeline instead of taking us back in time?"

"I don't think Zelda was ever _supposed_ to reset everything. The war was already so chaotic with all of the time travel…I think the Triforce's only way to _reset_ everything was to make a new reality. But I think even that was stretching the power of the goddesses. Everything collapsed."

"Everything collapsed when we came together. What does that mean?"

"No, Link." Sheik ran his fingers over Link's chest, drawing patterns into his skin. "Everything collapsed when you found your other half. Part of you stayed in the original time and the other part went to the new one. You were the only thing holding the alternate reality together. Because you're the Hero of Time. You're the pillar."

"My other half…" Link whispered, remembering the weird, fragmented memory of his seconds, hours, years, _centuries_ in the nether, staring at a brighter version of himself. "I saw it. When the timeline collapsed. The me that stayed in the other timeline felt everything and the me that lived in the other time…was just broken. I wanted to feel…and I could. But I was never whole."

"I think you left your soul in this timeline. That was why you couldn't speak or find happiness."

Link shivered at the thought, the movement making a slice in his side sting. Sheik laid a hand on his chest to still him, making a disapproving sound. He wanted to laugh at how Sheik was still forever protective, but sleep was tugging on him now.

"So why were you just as miserable as me when we were in the other timeline?" he asked groggily, reaching around to run his fingers through messy blonde hair.

"Go to sleep, Hero," Sheik whispered.

"Hey," he whined half-heartedly. "Don't dodge. I'm asking a question. With my voice. I have a voice now. So answer my question."

Sheik made an exasperated sound, shaking his head.

"I was miserable because I didn't have you."

* * *

_End_

As always, it took me a freakishly long amount of time to finish this. In fact, I started it January 2012. Anyway, eternal thanks to Toby for supporting me and reminding me that writing fanfiction is the ultimate therapy.

Any typos or mistakes you see, _please_ tell me about them; I'm my own beta. Any inconsistencies you find are because the Zelda universe is the most inconsistent one I've ever known. Reviews are appreciated. If not, thanks for reading.


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